Highway 97
by ChristyK
Summary: Dean and Sam investigate a phantom driver who is killing people on a Colorado highway
1. Chapter 1

This is just a short little fic I came up with.

**Highway 97**

Dean and Sam stood in front of the car rental shop checking out the cars available for rent.

"This is going to cost a fortune." Sam said as they looked around trying to find the cheapest car on the lot. He turned up his collar and put his hands in his pockets trying to stay warm against the cold Colorado December.

"It's worth it. There's no way I'm driving my car on that highway. I want my baby safe and sound."

_They had read reports in the paper of a mysterious highway in Colorado which had been the location of more then the average number of deaths in the last few months. Cars with seasoned drivers had inadvertently swerved off the road and ended up in the canyon below the highway. Most of the occupants of the cars were killed. The few who had survived told of being forced off the highway by a black pickup truck which suddenly appeared out of no where and chased them. The police wrote it off as a case of road rage. But it had caught the Winchester's interest. They had been involved in a similar case like this years ago and were wondering if this case might be the same A phantom driver who would suddenly appear out of no where and force drivers off the road. It was never determined what caused the phantom to attack or how his victims were chosen, but their dad had eventually figured out that the only way to destroy one was with a combination of holy water and fire. Through out the years reports of phantoms drivers had turned up around the country and since this one was in their vicinity they decided to investigate it and if it was determined to indeed be a phantom driver, destroy it._

They finally picked out a cheap older model car and signed it out for the week. They also paid for extra insurance; they knew if the phantom showed itself there was a good chance the car would be coming back damaged. Now all they could do was cruise the highway and hope that the black truck showed up. Dean also rented a storage shed for the week to keep his own car safe. He took a suitcase out of the trunk then patted the car lovingly on the hood before locking the storage shed's door.

"Why didn't you just kiss it and tell it how much you love it?" Sam said grinning as they walked to the rental car.

"You just don't understand. That car is a thing of beauty, meant to be admired, meant to be treated with love and respect."

"It's a car Dean, not a woman." Sam shook his head and gave a little laugh.

"I know it's a car jerk….Ah forget it you just don't understand."

"I understand you need to see a psychiatrist about your love affair with that car."

"Ah shut up." Dean opened the suitcase and took a gun like device out, he then put the suitcase in the back seat of the rental car.

They jumped in the car and started toward Highway 97 which ran over treacherous canyon roads. Even without a car chasing you the highway was dangerous especially in winter; sharp curves and falling rocks caused numerous accidents on portions of the highway. It was easy to see how a car could careen off the road and down into the steep canyon. Dean handed the gun to Sam.

"Okay, if that thing comes after us you need to shoot into the cab of the truck. This has a double barrel attached to it." He pointed to the two tube like devices fitted under the gun. "One shoots the holy water and the other the flare." He looked at Sam and smiled. "Pretty cool huh? The last time we encountered one of these drivers we had to shoot two guns remember, one with the holy water and then the flare gun? Well Dad and I designed this beauty. Now you can deliver the water and the flare at the same time."

Sam smiled over at his brother.

"You really get off on all these contraptions don't you?"

"Hell yeah I do. Hey, someone's got to do it and ….what can I say, we're good at it."

"What if I miss?" Sam said checking out the gun.

"Well don't."

"Well what if I do?"

"I have more canisters in the case and I'd suggest you keep a bunch of them up front here with you. You miss; you load up quick and fire again. I'll try to stay next to it as long as I can but if it knows what you're trying to do it might take off and we'll never get a second chance."

"Hey, you're better with guns then I am why don't I drive and you shoot?"

"Because I'm also a better driver then you."

"That's your opinion."

"Hey I have four more years driving experience then you do, that makes me a better driver."

Sam gave a little laugh and shook his head and looked out the side window.

"Look I'm not going to argue with you, I won't win."

"About time you learn that Bro." Dean grinned over at his brother.

**Later**

They had been driving for about two hours when Sam suddenly reached over and hit Dean on his arm.

"Dean." He said softly and when Dean looked at him he nodded toward his side window. On a road directly below him a black pickup had come from a side road and was closely following a red station wagon.

"Hold on!" Dean said as he put his foot down on the accelerator and sped toward the two vehicles.

Sam braced himself as the car flew down the road skidding on patches of ice.

"Hey, take it easy Dean you're going to kill us before we even get there."

"Just hold on." Dean said as he swerved around a curve and chased after the truck.

Sam glared at Dean as he lost his balance and almost slid off the seat. He quickly put on his seat belt.

Soon they were behind the truck, they slowed down and stayed behind it so they could keep an eye on it. For all they knew maybe this wasn't even the truck they were looking for.

They had followed it for awhile and were beginning to think it wasn't the right one when suddenly the truck pulled up next to the station wagon and began moving closer and closer to it forcing the driver to move closer to the edge of the road. Dean floored the accelerator and pulled up right behind the truck. He began bumping it trying to distract it away from the car. It didn't work. The pickup began pushing the car closer and closer to the edge."

"Dean you got to stop him!" Sam said as he loaded the gun.

Dean kept hitting the truck harder and harder trying to draw its attention away from the car.

"Come on you son of a bitch!" Dean got right behind the truck and tried to jump his car onto its bumper figuring he could brake and hopefully hold the truck back giving the car time to get away. "Shoot it!" He yelled to Sam when his attempt failed.

"Try to hold it steady!" Sam said as he leaned out the window and aimed the gun. But the road was bumpy and full of ruts and the cartridge hit below the pickup truck's window. He got back in the car and reloaded, but before he could aim they watched in horror as the station wagon sailed off the road and into the canyon below.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for the reviews

**Highway 97**

Chapter two

"Noooo!" Sam screamed as he watched the station wagon sail off the side of the canyon. He hung out the window and instinctively reached toward it as if he'd be able to catch it before it fell.

"Sammy!" Dean grabbed Sam's legs before he fell out the window. Once Sam was safe inside the car Dean jammed on the brakes and skidded to the side of the road, he threw it in reverse and backed up to where the car went off the edge. They both got out of the car and glanced at the pickup as it sped off into the night, then they slid down the steep canyon wall toward the car which lay crumbled at the bottom of it.

It took a while before they could reach the car; and by the time they got there each of them was covered in scrapes and bruises from the sharp rocks. When they finally stood next to the car they glanced at each other, neither one wanting to see what might be inside, but knowing if the occupants were still alive they needed their help. They both got down on their stomachs and crawled into what was left of the car, Dean on the driver's side and Sam on the passenger's.

Dean could tell immediately the driver was dead and he looked over at his brother who was trying to comfort the woman in the passenger's seat who was badly injured.

"Hang on; we're going to get you out of here." Sam gently pushed the woman's hair off of her blood covered face.

The woman began coughing up blood spraying Sam's face with it. He didn't even bother wiping it off; his only concern was trying to free the woman from the wreckage. He kept tugging on the jagged medal, cutting his hands as he tried to pull it off of her.

Dean crawled out of his window and was about to go and help Sam when he noticed the trail of gasoline that was snaking its way toward the engine which was throwing sparks. He knew the entire car could be engulfed in flames at any moment.

"Sam! It's going to blow!" He whispered as he slid down next to his brother not wanting the woman to hear him.

"We got to get her out of here Dean!" Sam whispered back, a desperate look on his face.

Dean crawled in next to Sam trying to help but soon saw how helpless the situation was. The woman's body was completely twisted in the metal. There was no way they could get her out of the car, not without help. Dean looked over at Sam and shook his head, letting him know it was hopeless. Sam looked back at him, tears in his eyes. He couldn't just leave this woman here to die.

"I'll be right back." He said as he touched her face.

"No! Please don't leave me!" The woman's eyes were wild with fear and pain.

"I'll be back…I promise, I won't leave you." He said as both he and Dean crawled out of the car.

"Dean I can't just leave her there."

"Sammy this whole car is going to go up any minute. There's nothing we can do….I'm sorry." He said when he saw the look on Sam's face.

Just then the gasoline ignited and quickly spread to the inside of the car. They could hear the woman screaming in pain and terror inside. Sam started to head back into the burning car but Dean grabbed him holding him back.

"Let go of me, I got to help her!"

"There's nothing you can do Sammy!" Dean said as he tried to pull his struggling brother away from the car. "I'm sorry Sammy." He said as he held tightly onto him. Sam squeezed his eyes shut as he listened to the woman's screams slowly die as the entire car was consumed.

Dean then released Sam who stood looking at the car, tears running down his face.

"I told her I'd be back." He said sadly.

"There was nothing we could have done Sam. I'm sorry." Dean put his hand on Sam's shoulder and squeezed. He too had tears in his eyes as he walked away, heart broken that they hadn't been able to save the woman. Sam finally pulled himself away from the car and he and Dean began the long climb up to their car. Once there they climbed in the car and sat in silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts. Dean put his arm on the back of the seat and looked over at Sam who sat starring at the floor.

"You okay?"

Sam nodded.

"Sam there was nothing we could have done for her. She was trapped and there was no way to get her out."

"I promised her I wouldn't leave her." He said his voice choked with emotion.

"There was nothing you could have done Sam."

"I should have …done something."

"What….die with her?"

Sam shook his head sadly and looked out the side window. He knew Dean was right, the situation had been hopeless, but he knew he would never get the woman's pain filled screams out of his head. He finally looked over at his brother.

"What do we do now?"

"Well first we need to tell the cops about the accident. I'm thinking we better make an anonymous call… we don't want to have to answer a lot of questions. Then I say we look for this bastard and send him back to hell."

**Later**

They contacted the police from a phone booth back in town, and then watched from another canyon road as the police and rescue personnel arrived and removed the vehicle.

"How do you think he chooses who he's going to go after?" Sam asked as he watched them put the car on a flat bed truck.

"I don't know. That's one thing we could never figure out. Dad and I looked into the backgrounds of the different victims and couldn't find anything connecting them to each other. As far as we could tell he just randomly chooses them."

"Well we got to stop him. That couple down there….they could have had kids… and now they're orphans."

Dean looked over at his brother and could see the sadness in his eyes. He knew he was always better at dealing with tragedy then Sam was or at least he appeared that way to everyone. But the truth was he too mourned for the couple's death but he knew there was nothing they could have done and to dwell on it like Sam did would get them nowhere.

"Hey we're going to get this creep. There's no way he's getting away from the Winchester boys." Dean grinned over at Sam

"You know we're not going to be able to rid the world of every evil thing. We're just human."

"No we can't, but we can sure try."

**The next night **

They had been driving through the back canyon roads for over two hours with no luck.

"Maybe he moved on to another highway." Sam said as he looked out the side window.

"Or maybe not." Dean said as he looked in his rear mirror and watched as a black pickup pulled up behind them.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

**Highway 97**

Chapter three

Sammy spun around in his seat and watched as the pickup pulled up right behind their bumper. He looked over at Dean and took a deep breath trying to prepare himself for what ever was to come.

"Just get the gun ready Sam, we're going to get this son of a bitch."

Dean could sense Sam's uneasiness he was nervous too. If this didn't go as they planned they could end up also at the bottom of the canyon.

Sam loaded the cartridge and climbed out the window pointing the gun at the front windshield of the truck. But just as he was about to fire the truck sped up and got next to them.

"Sam look out!" Dean yelled a warning as a large rock formation on Sam's side of the road was quickly coming toward them. Dean reached over and grabbed Sam's belt and yanked as hard as he could with one hand. Sam's body popped back into the car just as they passed the rock.

"Whew. Thanks Bro." Sam knew if he had still been hanging out of the window he more then likely would have been cut in half.

Dean didn't answer him he was having his own problem trying to keep the car from hitting the pickup truck. The road was very narrow and the two vehicles were only a few inches apart. The icy roads didn't help either as their car kept sliding on patches of ice.

Sam leaned over Dean and pointed the gun out Dean's side window trying to get a good shot at the side window of the truck. But then, as if the truck was aware of what he was trying to do, pulled up further in front of them blocking its side window.

"Shoot through the back window!" Dean yelled.

Sam aimed and fired. The canister hit the back window but bounced off and fell harmlessly into the bed of the pickup truck where it exploded.

"What the hell?" Sam said as he reloaded.

"That was dead on, what happened?" Dean asked.

"I don't know it bounced off the window." He leaned over again and fired with the same results.

"Dean you better back off. He must have some kind of plating or something on the back windshield, I can't get through it."

Instead of backing off Dean stepped on the gas and kept the car next to the truck.

"Shoot through the side window."

Sam leaned over again but as he did the pickup truck started banging against them trying to force them off the road. Sam, no longer wearing a seatbelt, was thrown around the front of the car. He managed to get back into his seat but then grunted in pain as the pickup knocked the car hard into a large boulder on his side of the road tossing him violently inside the car. Dean's body was jerked hard also as the truck pounded into his side.

"You okay?" Sam asked.

"Yeah…I'm going to try and pull in front of it, see if you can get in the back and get a shot at the front windshield."

Sam did as he was told. Once in the back he rolled down the window and hung outside taking careful aim. Just as he was about to fire the pickup sped up and delivered another hard blow to the car just as it was heading into a curve.

"Hang on!" Dean yelled back to his brother as he fought to keep the car on the road.

Another hard hit and the car started to head for the cliff.

"Sam jump!" Dean screamed as the car went over the edge.

Dean threw the door open, unfastened his seatbelt, and for a second looked in horror at the long drop but he knew staying in the car would be worse. "Jump!" He shouted once more back to his brother then threw himself out the window. He hit the ground hard and rolled. He grunted in pain as his body bounced off of rocks as he slid down the side of the canyon. The last thing he saw was the car rolling over and over down into the canyon.

Sam heard Dean's warning and grabbed the door handle but it wouldn't budge. He tugged frantically but to no avail. It was jammed probably from being hit by the truck. He watched as Dean threw himself out and prayed he would be okay. He tried to crawl over the seat into the front seat but the car began to flip in the air and he was thrown violently to the roof then back to the seat as it tumbled over and over. Finally it hit the ground. His last conscious thought was wondering if Dean had made it out alive then he passed out.

The car rolled over and over down the cliff before finally coming to rest on its roof precariously perched on an outcropping of rock

**Two hours later**

Sam woke up to a world of pain. He felt something dripping into his eyes and reached up and wiped the blood from a deep gash above his eyebrow. He then tried to move but ended up screaming in agony. He lay there trying to remember what had happened. Then it came to him. Dean!

"Dean!" He screamed when he noticed his brother wasn't next to him. Where was he? He tried to crawl out through the shattered windshield but something was holding him back. He grimaced in pain as he tried to free his leg which was wedged under the seat…he wasn't going anywhere. "Dean!" He cried out again. He remembered Dean telling him to jump but he couldn't because the door was jammed. Was he lying out there somewhere hurt ….or dead? He knew he had to free himself; he had to find his brother. He reached down and ran his hand along his leg to see if he could feel what was trapping him. When he pulled his hand back it was dripping with blood.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks for the reviews. I'm glad you're enjoying the story. And zippdipp ( if you're still reading) – Hey it wasn't the Impala I sent flying off the cliff, no way would I do that, it was a rental. LOL And you're right Dean would have killed me if I had damaged his baby.

**Highway 97**

Chapter four

Dean lay on his back staring up at the stars. In the distance he could hear Sam calling for him and wanted to answer him but it took all his strength just to stay awake. He had hit the ground hard and now lay on it stunned. At least if Sam was calling for him he knew his brother was alive. He took a few deep breaths then attempted to get up. He rolled over to his stomach and pushed himself up to his hands and knees. He winced in pain as his whole body protested. He slowly stood up, and clenched his teeth in agony as he tried to straighten up. Slowly reaching down, he ran his hand over his leg trying to determine if it was broken or just bruised. Either way he had to find his brother.

**Later in the car**

"Dean!" Sam called out again weakly. Tears filled his eyes at the thought that his brother might be dead or hurt and there was nothing he could do. "Dean!" He screamed again, "Oh God Dean where are you?" He moaned.

"Right here Bro." Dean said as he carefully crawled in the side window ignoring his own pain. He had seen how close to the edge the car was and knew a rock slide or a strong gust of wind could send the car over.

"Oh thank God, I thought you were dead." Sam gave Dean a small smile relieved that he was still alive.

"Hey, it takes more then flying off a cliff to kill me, you should know that." Dean grinned back trying to hide the worry from his face. Sam's face was pale and sweaty; he could tell he might be badly injured. "Why didn't you jump?" Dean said as he gently ran his hands over Sam's arms to make sure they weren't broken.

"I couldn't…the door was jammed." Sam could see the pain on Dean's face that he was trying to hide from him. "You okay?"

"I've been better, how 'bout you?"

"I'm fine." Sam lied. "But my leg is jammed under the seat. I can't get it out."

As Dean reached under the seat he put his hand in an ever growing pool of blood. He sucked in his breath, Sam's leg was bleeding badly and he prayed he hadn't cut an artery. He carefully felt around the leg and could feel Sam tense with pain when he touched the part of his leg that was trapped. From what he could tell Sam's leg was impaled on a piece of metal under the seat and he could feel the blood oozing out of it.

"Can you get it loose?" Sam asked.

Dean looked up at Sam trying to hide the worry from his face; his brother was slowly bleeding to death.

"Your leg's stuck under there pretty good and uh…you're bleeding a little."

"Oh…" Sam could tell there was more to it then Dean had told him, he knew Dean was trying to protect him from the truth.

"Yeah …um…" When Dean took off his belt Sam knew it must be bad. "I …uh…need to stop the bleeding." He glanced at Sam's face and could tell that Sam knew it wasn't good.

"Go ahead." Sam said as he braced himself, preparing for the pain to come.

Dean wrapped his belt high around Sam's thigh then shut his eyes for a second; he hated to hurt his brother but knew he had no choice. He yanked the belt tight.

"Arghhh!" Sam threw his head back and screamed in agony.

"Sorry Sammy." Dean winced in sympathy.

Sam nodded trying to let Dean know that it was okay, he knew he had no choice.

"How bad is it?" Sam asked when he could finally speak.

"Not bad." Dean lied. "But I'm going to need help getting you out of here. I better go see if I can find any"

"Not tonight…." Sam blurted out. "Please not tonight." Sam was scared and Dean could see his eyes glistening in the dark. Sam knew he was getting weaker and needed help, but he didn't want his brother wandering around the canyon in the dark. "Just stay here tonight and go for help in the morning."

"Sammy, you need help now." Dean was worried; Sam might bleed to death before morning.

"Please, wait till morning." Sam begged. He was starting to feel the cold and was starting to shiver from both the cold and the blood loss. He didn't want to be alone, not if he was dying. "Please Dean."

"Damn it Sammy." Dean was torn about what to do. His brother needed help and he needed it now but he also didn't want to leave Sam alone at night, not when he was hurting this bad. "Okay, but first thing in the morning I'm going for help."

"Okay…thanks."

Seeing his brother shivering Dean painfully removed his own jacket and put it over Sam. He then crawled as close as he could to him and pulled him into his arms trying to warm him the best he could. Sam soon passed out and his head fell on Dean's shoulder. With Sam unconscious Dean left his tender side show, he smoothed back his brother's hair and put his cheek against his face.

"You got to hang in there Bro" he said as he wiped the tears from his eyes. Off and on through out the night Dean would loosen the tourniquet on Sam's leg allowing blood to flow back into his leg. But then he would quickly tighten it before he could lose too much blood. Even as he left fresh blood flow into the leg Dean knew there was a possibility Sam could lose his leg, he had no idea how badly damaged it was. But his leg was better then his life Dean thought. Sam moaned throughout most of the night and Dean pulled him even closer as he swallowed the lump in his throat. He could tell Sam was growing weaker every minute.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks once more for the reviews I love reading the comments

**Highway 97**

Chapter five

Dean had finally drifted off to sleep during the night and woke suddenly. He looked down at Sam who lay in his arms not moving. He put his hand up to Sam's face and it was cold.

"Sam!" Dean shouted as he felt his heart pounding. When Sam didn't move he shook him gently. "Sammy!" Sam finally opened his eyes and Dean left out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding. "Damn it Sammy don't scare me like that!"

"What's the matter?" Sam said weakly.

"I thought….never mind." Dean didn't even want to remember that for a second he thought Sam had died during the night.

Dean covered Sam with his jacket then crawled outside. The ground was covered by a thin layer of snow. He rubbed his arms as the cold air started to chill him and crawled back into the car. He once more released the tourniquet for a few seconds and was glad to see the color return to Sam's leg.

"Sam I'm going to go up to the road and see if I can flag down a car." He could see a hint of fear in his brother's eyes at the thought of being left alone trapped in the car, but Sam only nodded and held up Dean's jacket for him. "No you keep it." Dean said as he put it back on top of his brother.

"Dean…you're going to freeze to death out there. Take it….please." Sam once more tried to give Dean his jacket.

"Sammy, I'm not going to freeze. Till I climb up that cliff I'm going to be sweating, and I'll be right back as soon as I flag someone down. It might take them a little time to get back here with help because cell phones won't work in the canyon and they'll have to find a pay phone or a house. But as soon as I have help on the way I'll be right back."

"Take the gun." Sam handed Dean the gun that was lying next to him. "Take the extra cartridges too."

At first Dean didn't know whether to take the gun or not. He hated leaving Sam with nothing to defend himself with but he had never heard of a phantom driver coming back to the scene of an accident and figured Sam should be safe till he returned. It shouldn't take him too long to get help.

"You take it easy; I'll be back as soon as I can." He gave Sam's shoulder a slight squeeze. "I promise."

"Be careful."

"Don't worry about me I'll be fine. Try not to move too much." He patted Sam on the shoulder then crawled out of the car. As soon as he started walking he realized he had been hurt worse then he thought. He could barely put pressure on his leg without a sharp pain shooting up through his hip. But he knew he had to keep moving, Sam's life depended on it. He would deal with his leg later. He started to climb; each step was agony as he slowly made his way up the canyon wall. A thousand thoughts kept going through his mind. What if no one would stop? He wouldn't blame them, not after what had been happening out on this stretch of highway. What if Sammy bled to death before he got back? What if there was a rock slide and the car went over the edge? He tried to get those thoughts out of his mind. He had to believe a car would stop for him and he'd get help for his brother. He glanced back down toward the car which now was far below him. His eyes filled with tears as he thought of his brother trapped in there slowly bleeding to death. If something happened to him no one would even be able to spot the car from the road. If he didn't make it, his brother was dead. That thought alone kept him going. He gritted his teeth in pain with each step. Finally in what seemed like hours Dean pulled himself up over the edge. He bent down and put his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. He slowly stood up and looked up and down the highway, no cars were in sight. He looked around for a landmark so he'd be able to find Sam again then headed off limping down the highway.

**The car**

Sam was worried about Dean. He was freezing even with two coats on and Dean was out there somewhere with none. He also was scared. He felt lousy and knew he was in trouble. Dean hadn't come right out and told him but he knew as soon as his brother put the tourniquet on his leg that it was bad. He reached down and touched his leg then ran his hand back along it till he came to the injury. He shut his eyes and clenched his teeth as he felt the jagged piece of metal sticking out of his leg. He tried to fight back the feeling of panic that was setting in. He was trapped and a horrible feeling of claustrophobia started to come over him. All he wanted was to yank his leg free and find Dean, but he knew if he did that he would more then likely bleed to death. He smiled to himself when he thought how pissed Dean would be if he was out there freezing trying to find help for him and he had yanked his leg free and bled to death before he got back to him. He pulled Dean's coat up around his shoulders.

"Damn it Dean you're going to freeze out there." He said to himself as he lay shivering even with two coats on.

**The highway**

Dean cupped his hands and blew warm air into them trying to warm them as he walked down the highway. He had never felt this cold before. Right now the only thing he wanted was a nice warm bed with an electric blanket in it cranked up to ninety and his brother in the next room safe. Where the hell were all the cars he wondered? He figured after all the unexplained deaths on the highway most travelers must be avoiding it. He was trying to decide what to do, go back to Sam, or continue down the highway hoping to find help. If he went back to Sam it might take him a few hours to climb down the cliff and once there, there would be nothing he could do for his brother but watch him bleed to death, no, he had to find help. His leg was killing him and tears of pain came to his eyes as he continued walking. Finally, in what seemed like an eternity, a car appeared. Dean wasn't going to take any chances of it driving past him. As soon as it got near him he jumped in front of it causing it to brake. He quickly ran to the driver's window. At first the man wouldn't roll down his window, but finally he cracked it a little.

"I need your help. I've been in an accident, and my brother is trapped in the car, he's hurt bad."

"Where?" The man asked.

Dean pointed down the road.

"See that outcropping of rocks?"

"Yeah."

"Just a little ways past that. The car is at the bottom of the canyon. My brother's leg is caught on a piece of metal inside it and I can't get him out. You need to bring back help. Tell them someone is trapped in a vehicle at the bottom of the canyon and needs to be extricated. It's important you remember the landmark. He's right below that."

The man nodded then looked at Dean.

"You better hop in I'll give you a ride back with me."

"No, I need to go back to my brother."

"But it's freezing out here."

"It's okay, I promised him I'd come back. Please just turn around and get help."

The man removed his jacket and opened the door and handed it to Dean.

"Thanks." He said as he put it on. It was a little big but felt wonderful. "Hurry please."

"I'll be back with help as soon as I can." The man carefully turned the car around then sped off in the direction he had just come from.

Dean had just begun to head back toward Sam when he noticed a black pickup truck speeding toward him.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

**Highway 97**

Chapter six

Dean watched as the pickup truck started heading toward him. At first he thought the truck was going to pass him and chase the man who was going for help. He cautiously stepped to the side of the road and readied the gun. But when the pickup truck was only a short distance away it swerved and headed right for him. He dived out of the way and landed hard on his bad leg. He screamed in pain as he rolled onto his stomach to see what the truck was going to do next. Instead of chasing the car the truck spun around and headed back toward him, but this time it kept going. He watched as it stopped above the area where their car had gone over.

"What the hell are you doing?" Dean said to himself as he tried to walk as fast as his injured leg would carry him toward the truck. He watched in horror as the driver's door opened. "Sam!"

**Their car **

Sam groaned loudly as he tried to move, the feeling of pure panic getting stronger with each passing moment. Where was Dean? Had something happened to him? Did he need help? Sam pounded on the seat that kept him a prisoner in frustration.

"Damn it!" He screamed. He had to try and get out of there. He couldn't just lay there waiting to die. He grabbed hold of the seat and began rocking it back and forth. Tears stung his eyes, from both the pain and the frustration of being trapped. It was hopeless; if something had happened to Dean he knew he was as good as dead. No one would find him down there. He looked at the ground and winced when he saw fresh blood, he had started bleeding again even with the tourniquet on.

**The highway**

When Dean had finally made it up to the truck he held the gun out in front of him. He got as close as he could then fired. The canister went through the side window and exploded. There was a small flame that only burned for a few minutes then extinguished. He swallowed the lump in his throat. He hadn't heard the horrible scream that always came when a phantom driver was destroyed.

"Oh God no." Dean said as he looked over the edge of the cliff and down into the canyon. He had never heard of one of them doing this before but it looked like the driver had gotten out of the truck and was heading down to finish off one of his victims still alive…Sam! "You son of a bitch!" Dean shouted as he too began the decent down the steep canyon walls.

**The car**

Sam could almost feel his life force slowly draining out of his body. He was getting tired and all he wanted was to give in to the calling blackness but he knew if he did there was a chance he wouldn't wake up. He had heard bleeding to death really wasn't all that bad. You just got weaker, and weaker, until you went to sleep and didn't wake up. He knew that was what was happening to him. He reached in to his jacket and pulled out a piece of paper and a pen. Maybe he should tell Dean goodbye. He began to write….

_Dean,_

_Don't beat your self up over this; it's not your fault. I know you did everything possible to get back to me. But I guess it was meant to be. I'm sorry I couldn't hold on but I just want you to know I love you Bro and I…._

Sam stopped when he heard someone outside the car.

"Dean?"

When no one answered he thought maybe he had imagined it. But then suddenly he could feel the car start to slide as if someone was pushing it.

"Dean!" When his brother didn't answer his heart started pounding. "Who's out there!"

There was another violent push against the car and Sam could feel it begin to slide further down into the canyon. He screamed out in pain as he felt the twisted metal press against his trapped leg.

**The canyon**

Dean sucked in his breath as he watched the car roll further into the canyon.

"Noooooo!" He screamed as he continued climbing down the side of the canyon as fast as he could as the sound of Sam's painful scream echoed in the canyon and turned his blood to ice.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks for all the reviews. I really appreciate that you took the time to leave a little note. This is the final chapter and I suck at endings so hope this is okay.

**Highway 97**

Chapter seven

Dean limped as quickly as he could toward the car.

"Sam!" He screamed praying he'd hear an answer.

"Dean!" Sam called weakly relieved that Dean was with him again and if he died he wouldn't be alone. "What's happening?"

"The driver is down here with you." Dean looked around hoping he could see something to indicate where the driver was. He gripped his gun tightly, ready to fire at any moment. "Come on show yourself you son of a bitch!" Dean shouted out into the canyon. There was no response. He slowly closed in on the car. "You okay? How's the leg?" Dean shouted over to the car as he carefully approached it.

Sam looked down at the slowly growing pool of blood beneath his leg and tightened the tourniquet.

"I'm okay." Sam knew that wasn't true. He was slowly bleeding to death.

Dean slowly approached the car knowing at any moment it could slide further into the canyon. He knew if that happened there was no way Sam could survive. He gritted his teeth in pain as he leaned down and carefully crawled in through the shattered window. He gave Sam a reassuring smile.

"Help's coming." When he saw the additional blood beneath Sam's leg he prayed it would come in time. He reached over and gently readjusted the tourniquet around his brother's leg. Sam turned his head to the side and squeezed his eyes shut trying to hide the pain, then looked at his brother.

"Dean…you better get out of here…The car could go at any moment."

Dean squeezed Sam's shoulder reassuringly; he hadn't realized that Sam knew how precarious the situation was. He then saw the note Sam had in his hand.

"What's this?" He took it out of Sam's hand and started to read it but Sam quickly pulled it away from him wrinkled it up and stuck it in his pocket. "What was that….a goodbye note?" Dean swallowed the lump in his throat as he thought of Sam lying here alone writing a note to him in case he didn't make it.

"I just thought…just in case…."

"Look Sam we're going to be fine. Help will be here any minute." Dean lied; he had no idea when help was coming or if it would get there in time.

"What about…." Before Sam could finish he watched in horror as something grabbed Dean's legs and pulled him violently out of the car. "Dean!"

"Arghhhhhhh!" Dean screamed as his injured leg felt like it had been pulled from its socket. He could hear Sam inside the car calling for him but right now he was in too much pain to answer.

"Dean!" Sam screamed. He struggled in vain to free himself. Tears of frustration ran down his face at the thought that that thing might be killing his brother and there was nothing he could do.

Dean reached down at his side for the gun….it wasn't there. He must have dropped it when he was pulled out of the car. He tried to stand up but was punched hard in the stomach then shoved violently away from the car into a large boulder. He cried out as he hit the rock hard.

Sam's heart broke as he listened to Dean being hurt. He grabbed hold of the car seat and took a deep breath_. I'm going to die anyway_ he thought as he yanked as hard as he could and finally pulled his leg free. Blood poured out of the now ripped open wound. He didn't care; at least maybe he could save Dean, then at least one of them would live. He crawled over to the gun Dean had dropped then crawled out of the car fighting to stay conscious. He managed to get to the side of the car and propped himself up against it and watched as Dean was once more tossed violently. As Dean lay on the ground trying to catch his breath Sam could see his brother's arm being jerked up as the driver grabbed hold of it and was about to pick him up and throw him again. Sam took careful aim and fired at the area he thought the phantom would be standing. A horrible scream tore through the canyon as the driver was hit. Both Dean and Sam watched as it slowly began to become visible as the fire from the flare gun slowly engulfed it and the holy water destroyed it. With one last howl of rage and pain it vanished. Sam slowly sank to the ground exhausted. Dean painfully crawled over next to his brother and pulled him into his lap. He once more reached down and tightened the tourniquet praying his brother hadn't already lost too much blood for it to make any difference.

"Sammy?" He said as he brushed Sam's long brown hair out of his eyes. "You did it Sammy….it's gone."

Sam slowly opened his eyes and looked up at him.

"You okay Bro?" He said weakly.

"Couldn't be better."

"Well, you look like hell." Sam gave a little grin then settled back safe in his brother's arms.

"That's almost impossible." Dean grinned back.

**Epilogue**

Help arrived two hours later and both Dean and Sam were airlifted to the nearest hospital. Sam was immediately given blood transfusions and taken into surgery to repair the deep wound in his leg. Dean was treated for a cracked hip and numerous cuts and bruises. They spent five days in the hospital and then were released with orders to take it easy for the next two weeks.

**Later**

Both Winchesters stood outside of the storage shed on crutches while Dean opened the door and smiled.

"Boy I missed you….you look beautiful." He said to his Impala, then limped over and kissed its hood.

"Do you two want to be alone?" Sam smiled shaking his head. "I swear Dean you'd marry her if you could."

"Yeah, I think I would." He ran his hand over the fender. "Feel that body… so smooth, so sexy…."

"I've heard enough." Sam said as he turned away. "I'll see you over at the diner if you can pull yourself away from your lady love long enough to join me." Sam shut the door, leaving Dean and his car alone and made his way over to the nearby diner.

The End


End file.
